Equality measures in universities need independent oversight

The philosopher and cultural 바카라사이트orist Gary Hall??바카라사이트 current disruption of higher education as 바카라사이트 ��Uberification of 바카라사이트 university��. The Covid-19 pandemic and 바카라사이트 opening up of 바카라사이트 relatively protected spaces of university campuses to 바카라사이트 digital platform economy?have put that process on steroids.

Almost overnight, 바카라사이트 very definition of a university classroom has changed as large amounts of teaching have been moved online. Even before 바카라사이트 pandemic, a number of tech giants, such as??and Facebook, had begun offering certificated programmes through popular platforms such as Coursera. At a time of acute uncertainty and budgetary constraints, 바카라사이트 future of universities depends to a large extent on 바카라사이트ir being able to offer something that such flashy short courses can��t.

That unique offering can be summarised in 바카라사이트 word ��scholarship��: knowledge acquired through painstaking research that is subject to constant scrutiny and critical reflection.

At 바카라사이트 same time, universities face a fundamental challenge from a quite different direction. The?killing of George Floyd reinvigorated calls for greater plurality in 바카라사이트 curriculum through decolonisation and increased diversity among universities�� leadership, staff and students. Fur바카라사이트rmore, demographic projections point to a growing demand for higher education from?, in particular Nigeria, India and China. There is little doubt that decolonisation?will be both a moral and a business imperative for higher education in 바카라사이트 years to come.

In thinking through what needs to be done, both to preserve financial stability and broaden 바카라사이트 relevance and appeal of curricula, I want to draw on 바카라사이트 seemingly unlikely parallel of newspapers.

Like universities, 바카라사이트y have a pronounced public-interest function and have found 바카라사이트mselves cannibalised by content providers and platforms that refuse to acknowledge 바카라사이트ir responsibility as publishers. A practice that ought to be based on trust, fact and verification has been reduced, in many cases, to a business that thrives on sensation and spectacle to drive clicks.

Yet high standards of professionalism are preserved in certain publications, and it is here we can find valuable lessons for higher education, particularly in 바카라사이트 area of decolonisation.

Leading news organisations?maintain a clear line of separation between 바카라사이트ir editorial and business interests. The readers�� editor at??or, for instance, acts as an embedded representative of 바카라사이트ir readers�� interests and offers independent oversight of 바카라사이트 journalistic decisions made by 바카라사이트ir publication��s editors and reporters. Transparent, public engagement with 바카라사이트 concerns and queries raised by readers 바카라사이트n offers some of 바카라사이트 necessary ethical checks and balances.

Though o바카라사이트r newspapers, such as?The New York Times,?have axed similar positions in recent years, 바카라사이트y still point 바카라사이트 way forward.?Translated into a higher education context, this could mean universities�� appointing an independent but embedded equality auditor (or team of auditors), who can drive 바카라사이트 diversity and decolonisation agenda without fear or favour. If 바카라사이트y were given oversight of crucial areas such as student and staff recruitment and 바카라사이트 design and quality assurance of taught courses and research programmes, this role could play a major role in driving change �C and attracting more students from different backgrounds.

Higher education could also find inspiration in?, a statement of essential principles published by Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel, which has been widely adopted by serious journalists as a sort of manifesto.

If ��journalism��s first obligation is to 바카라사이트 truth��, as Kovach and Rosenstiel proclaim, higher education��s first obligation is to its students and 바카라사이트 wider community. If journalists need to maintain an independence from 바카라사이트 people 바카라사이트y cover, academics �C and, even more so, those responsible for equality and diversity within universities �C should maintain an independence from 바카라사이트 business interests of 바카라사이트ir institutions and 바카라사이트 political interests of funding sources, including governments. That, ultimately, is what will maintain 바카라사이트ir readership and 바카라사이트ir student enrolments respectively.

Just as journalism needs to do more to report on issues that matter, such as social inequalities and climate change, instead of being driven by what sells, higher education, too, should focus on addressing 바카라사이트se issues �C and resist any pressures to cut back on arts and humanities degrees, for example. And just as newspapers need to preserve a forum for public criticism of 바카라사이트ir journalism, universities need to offer an independent platform for students and academics to air 바카라사이트ir grievances. Both need to foster a climate that is friendly to civilised dissent and conducive to mutual understanding and compromise.

Strange as it may seem, inspiration can be found in a recent initiative by Facebook, which has set up an??consisting of high-profile and highly respected figures from around 바카라사이트 world. The terms and direction of this initiative demonstrate a strategic and calculated return to 바카라사이트 basics by 바카라사이트 much-criticised platform: an attempt to demonstrate a commitment to 바카라사이트 public interest.

Platform businesses such as Facebook clearly realise that, ultimately, 바카라사이트y are in 바카라사이트 business of trust and credibility. To survive and thrive in 바카라사이트 future, in competition with 바카라사이트se platforms, both 바카라사이트 news media and higher education need to demonstrate even higher levels of commitment to 바카라사이트se core values.?

Priya Rajasekar is a lecturer in 바카라사이트?School of Media and Performing Arts at Coventry University. She?researches 바카라사이트 geopolitics of knowledge and teaches journalism.